Caltech Canvas Course Index
What is the Caltech Course Index?
The Caltech Canvas Course Index is a list of all published courses available to students for registration and "course shopping". The Course Index displays the course name, a brief description (if added by the instructor), and, if clicked, gives access to the course syllabus (only available to Caltech Canvas users).
By default, all courses beginning in academic year 2025-2026 are listed in the Course Index if the following conditions are true:
- The course is published.
- The course is using the most recent blueprint which enables inclusion in the index.
How do I include information about my course in the index?
Including a course description:
The course card for your course will include a description if you include one in the "Settings" page for your course. Navigate to "Settings" in your course navigation and enter a description in the box near the bottom of the "Course Details" tab. Learn more about your Course Settings in the Instructor Guide.
Making your card (and syllabus) visible to non-registered students:
In order to allow non-registered students (or other faculty members) to view your syllabus, you must use the "Syllabus" page that is included in your Canvas course shell. This page is preset to be visible to members of the Caltech community who have Canvas accounts - it is NOT visible to the public or others outside of Caltech. Additionally, your course must be published. If you aren't ready to publish your course before the start of term, but want students to be able to view the syllabus, you will need to publish the course but keep all other material unpublished. This can be done by organizing material into Modules that you do not publish OR by adjusting the navigation tabs so that ONLY the syllabus page is visible to users. Make sure you do not post any files (answer keys, exams, etc.) to your syllabus page that you do not want non-registered students to have access to.
Help! My course isn't listed in the Index!
If you are still in the habit of copying your entire course over from one term to the next, you have likely overwritten your inclusion in the Course Index (as well as several other important settings changes and updates).
How do I find the Caltech Course Index?
The Course Index can be found at: https://caltech.instructure.com/search/all_courses/ or by clicking "Courses" in your Canvas left-hand global navigation, clicking "All Courses" at the top of the fly-out window, and then choosing "Browse More Courses" at the top of the page. More detailed directions can be found in the Instructor Guide.